Against the System
by kairi1995
Summary: After the death of her love, Avery is thrown into the life of a hunter. She learns of things that her scientific mind never would have believed in. This life is unwanted, but she feels the need to continue what Erik started. Along the way, she makes friends and enemies, and fights off the apocalypse. Can she really handle all of this?
1. Chapter 1

Song of Inspiration: On the Arrow - AFI

Chapter 1

It never occured to Avery that the monster under the bed was real. She never thought twice when the house creaked and groaned or when the lights would flicker. She didnt believe in such things; She was a woman of science. She had never seen a ghost, and therefor, did not believe in them. Nothing could have prepared her for her new discoveries.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Under the dark charcole coulds rolling through the sky, a figure could be seen leaning against the wall of a buliding, who's grey color was only slightly brighter then the ominous storm coming. Upon closer inspection, the figure would be known as female. She was tall and full of curves that were slightly covered by the long white coat she wore. Her hair was a mess of dark chocolate curls that easily reached her lower back. The woman's skin was slightly tanned, but still on the paler side. Sparkling ivory green eyes would be revealed as she rasied her head. However, those eyes had a dull sheen to them as she stared off into space and were rimmed with red.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

_A sigh escaped Avery's lips as she pulled the Coke from the vending machine. One month... She had to tell two loving parents that their little daughter, who was no more than 10, had only one month left to live. The cancer had, unfortunatly, become terminal. It had attacked the poor girl's body too quickly. Any treatment would only add more pain, and it wouldnt even keep her alive. She would maybe have a few more weeks, and live them crippled with pain. No... It was better to just leave it be and hope for a miricale, which , of course, Avery did not believe in._

_"Dr. Pamler...?"_

_Avery turned to find a very meek blonde standing by her side. An intern by the name Elizabeth. She had a very grim look on her face. "We're ready when you are."_

_Avery nodded slowly and walked down the hall with her intern hot on her heels. "Wipe that look off your face, Dr. Godwin. You know the drill."_

_She cast a glance over her shoulder to confirm that the woman was doing as she said. With a heavy sigh, she pushed through the door and met the stares of three expectant people._

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

A single drop of water hit her pale cheek, but her lack of a reaction said she didnt feel it. A few moments later, another joined. It wasnt long before she was standing there as the rain poured and the storm raged. Her thoughts, hoever, were nowhere near the rain. Her mind was absolutly blank.

Her eyes stung again as salty tears mixed with the rain. All of her was soon drenched, from the messy mop on her head, to the insides of her shoes.

She finally moved, her bare hands reacheding behind her and splaying wide against the wall, wanting desperatly to feel something. As she felt the rough hospital wall, the world slowly came back to her. It nearly crushed her all over again. Avery's kness gave out and she fell to the ground, her hands balling into fists against the concret. Loud, heart wrenching sobs shook her body.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

_As they exited the child's room, the soulds of greiving could be heard, only muffled when they finally shut the door. Elizabeth looked like she herself wanted to cry for them, but remained strong. Avery gave her a tiny, sad smile. "You did good."_

_Elizabeth gave a small nod and took a deep breath. Before anything else could be said, a man came bursting through the doors, garbed in a dark blue ER cover over his green scrubs. The front of the cover was stained with red._

_"Dr. Palmer! Avery!"_

_The brunette turned serious instantly. "Micheal? What is it?"_

_He gasped for breath, but still managed to get his message across. "You-ER-NOW!" Aver nodded vigorously and handed her things to Elizabeth, then took off down the hall after Micheal._

_She grabbed a cover as she pushed through the double doors, but dropped it altogether when she spotted the person on the gurney. "Oh my God..." she whispered. "Erik!"_

_The man writhed on the gurney, his once tanned skin stained red. His blonde hair had taken on a similar feature. Five deep and rather long gashes were set in his chest, ruining the muscles there that Avery had memorized._

_Before she knew what she was doing, her feet had carried her over to where he was. Even through the pain, he managed a smile when he caught sight of her. "Avery, baby."_

_The brunette was allowed a spot beside him, her co-workers moving to give her room. "Erik!? Oh, God. What happened? Who did this? WHAT did this?!"_

_The man didnt seem to heard her questions. He still seemed to be in pain, but he was no longer thrashing around. He reached a hand up to caress her cheek. "I-I'm glad I got to see y-you."_

_"Erik dont talk. You need to-"_

_"No. Hush now." He seemed to take a moment, gasping for breath. "Find- find my j- journal. Read...read...re..."_

_His words trailed off as his eyelids fluttered shut. The beeping that filled the room turned to a steady drone. Avery was pushed back as the doctors there rushed around, desperatly trying to bring the beeps back._

_Avery stumbled back a few steps and waited. Tears streamed freely. When it became apparent that they werent going to bring him back, they all slowly looked to Avery. It was a long moment, but someone finally got up the curage to speak._

_"Avery..."_

_The sound startled her like a frightened doe. She jumpped, looked at them all with wide eyes, then bolted out the doors that lead outside. She leaned against the building, and she stayed that way until the rain hit._

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The sound of thunder vibrated throughout her body. She slowly unfolded herself from the ball she seemed to have curled up in. After standing another few moments, she squared her shoulder and walked back inside.

She was soaked, trailing water after her. The people left in the ER looked as if they werent sure if they should approach or leave her be. They opted for leaving her.

She passed through the halls in a daze, ignore everyone's questioning gazes. It seemed to take only minutes to make a 20 minute journey to the other side of the hospital. With robot-like movements, she grabbed her things from the 'locker room' and left the building.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Walking through her house was a nightmare. Everywhere there were reminders of the life she had with Erik, and the very painful reminder that just hours ago, it was suddenly ripped from her. The photos on the wall depicted a happy couple, full of smiles and love. She felt like they were mocking her.

With an angry cry, her fist smashed into the glass, shattering the perfect image of the couple at the park, the woman who was grinning so happily while clinging to the blonde man's back.

Her hand bled where the glass cut her.

New tears coated her face as she breathed heavily with adrenaline. The pain from loss coarsed through her as she grabbed the next picture from the wall and threw it down the hall. Her eyes were wild as she took a moment to catch her breath.

Then, Avery turned, spared the other photos not one glance, and walked into the bedroom. The comforter and sheets were a twisted mess from the night before. As she studied the different wrinkles in the sheets, she could feel the ghost of a lover's caress on her skin. She closed her eyes and willed herself not to cry again as she sank back into the bed, breathing in scent of the pillows. They smelled of Erik.

His last words popped into her head. She frowned, staring at the nightstand drawer, where she knew the journal would be. There was one time, about a year ago, when she was convinced that Erik was cheating on her. He would be gone for days, weeks at a time, never allowed her to look in his messages, and never, ever let her read the words he wrote. She had finaly had enough, and opened it to read. Before she could read one word, he had walked in. He was red with anger as he yelled, and he didnt speak to her for days. When he finaly did, he explained that there were things written on those pages that he wasnt ready for her to know. She accepted this, and told him of her fears. He had assured her that he would never do such a thing, and thet issue was dropped.

Now, Avery eyed the drawer with suspicion. After a moments hesitation, she leaned forward and opened it with a soft squeek. Reaching inside, her fingertips brushed the cool leather. Pulling it out, she stared at the brown coloring of the book and traced the star etched into the cover. The shape was encased in a circle.

She sat up properly in the bed with her back against the headboard. Undoing the leather straps, she opened it to the first page and began to read.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

After reading just a few pages, Avery was convinced that Erik was batshit crazy. The words didnt even make sense to her. Vampires, werewolves, and shapeshifters? Demons? What sane person believes in such things?

She skimed through the rest of it, seeing more and more of his crazy rantings. She then came across an envelope with her name on it, written in his perfect script. She opened it with trembling fingers.

_**My dearest Avery,**_

_**You reading this can only mean one thing. I am, most likely, dead. Unless you were snooping. If thats the case, please hold off on calling the men in white. I can assure you, I am not crazy. I know that will be your conclusion. You were always a believer only if you could see it with your own eyes.**_

_**Darling, know that in our years together, I did nothing but love you, and it never faded. It grew more and more each day. **_

_**Yes, I lied. I was never away on buisness. Well, I guess I would call it that, it was just never what you imagined. I wasnt a salesman, I was a savior. Every day, I fought the creatures that went bump in the night, ensuring that another family would be safe. Making sure that you were safe.**_

_**I know that this letter is short, but you always liked it when this were short and simple. Short, sweet, and to the point.**_

_**Dont bother with a funeral. I dont want one. This is what I want YOU to do.**_

_**Pack your things, but only what you need. Leave the day you read this. Dont ever look back. Now that im not there to protect you, I dont want to risk you being hurt. On the back is an address. Get in the car, and go there. The man who lives there is an old friend of mine. His name is Bobby Singer. He'll explain everything. And please, for the love of all that is good, dont ever get roped into this life. Its not something I would wish upon my enemies.**_

_**I love you Avery. Dont forget that. And dont be scared. I want you to continue to live, find someone you can love, have lots of babies, a nice house with a white fence, and live happily ever after.**_

_**Erik**_

By the time she had finished, Avery was bawling again. It was so much, too much, to take in. But as she clutched the letter in her hand, she found a new motive. Something that motivated her.

This journal, the letter, it did nothing to resolve anything. It just gave her more questions. But as she flipped the paper over, she knew exactly where to go to get answers.

Bobby Singer.

He would help her get to the bottom of this. He might have the proof that she needed.

The next few minutes were a blur as she dashed madly around the room, throwing things into a large duffle. In the closet, way in the back, she found another bag. She placed it gently on the bed, taking her time to open it. Inside, there was an arsenal. Handguns, a few shotguns, knives, bullets, machettes, and...salt? Along with a flask of water. The metal had the same star and circle etched into it.

Avery shook her head and zipped it closed, throwing it over her shoulder with her own bag. She clutched the journal in her hand and went to grab her keys. She found them still in thte door.

In a flurry of brown curls and duffle bags, she was in the car and down the road before you could blink.

And from the big city of Seatle, she was on her way to South Dakota.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

_This has got to be wrong..._

As Avery pulled into the junkyard, those were the only words that came to her.

After almost two days of driving, she had finally came to the address written on the back of Erik's letter. Why he would send her to a junkyard, she would never know. It looked sketchy at best. The appearance itself gave her second thoughts about all of this.

_Its okay_, she thought. _Deep breaths..._

She tapped the gas pedal slightly, bringing the car farther into the yard. A house came into view soon, which gave her some sort of relief. As she turned the engine off, she settled her hands on the top of her steering wheel.

Why was she here? What did this guy know and how could he help? Would he even bother?

She rested her head on the wheel as well, gathering her wits. She would not start crying again. She refused to.

Avery jerked the door open and made her way up the stairs. She wouldn't know the answer to her questions if she didn't try.

She knocked on the wooden door, and waited patiently.

Only a few seconds later, the door swung open. A man, slightly taller than herself, regarded her with a look she couldn't place. His eyes seemed aged. Brown hair peeked from under a baseball cap, which matched his beard. If she looked closely though, she could see the flecks of grey.

"Yes?"

Avery stopped her observations and blinked quickly. "Um, hi... Im looking for... Bobby? Bobby Singer?"

His eyes narrowed the slightest bit. "Who's askin'?"

His gruff response caught her off guard, but she soldiered on. She couldn't lose her nerve now. "Avery Palmer," she said. After a second though, she added "I believe you knew Erik? Forester?"

She watched as his expression changed from suspicion to recognition, but he was still guarded. "I'll ask again, who are you?"

She shuffled her feet and glanced at the ground. "I'm... Well, I was, his girlfriend. Umm, there was an accident..." Maybe it was her tone, or he caught the look on her face, but the realization seemed to dawn on him. "No..." he breathed.

When she nodded, he stepped aside as if to let her in. As she stepped over the threshold, she was able to take in the almost homey look of the place. The man, whom she had now assumed was Bobby, stepped by her, leading her into a sort of sitting/office room/ library. He sat in an armchair and motioned her to take a seat on the sofa.

"Tell me what happened."

And she did. She told him all of it, from him being admitted to the ER, finding his journal, even showed him the letter.

"He was crazy, right? There's no such thing as all of that. They're all just stories..." Her words trailed off when she got no confirmation from Bobby. "There's no way," she said as she stood from her spot on the couch. "I mean, I could believe in the whole demon thing if I were even the slightest bit religious, which, I'm not. But Werewolves? And witches? No, no way."

Bobby remained calm throughout her little rant. He raised an eyebrow at her when she went quiet. "Are you finished?" She nodded. "Good. I know all of this is hard to believe. Hell, sometimes I want to throw my hands up and convince myself I'm just batshit crazy. But darlin', this is all true."

He stood up and walked into the kitchen, motioning her to follow. "Why don't you," he said, reaching into the fridge and pulling out a few brown bottles. "Drink a few of these. You can crash on the couch, or even take one of the rooms that the boys use, and we'll talk more in the morning."

Avery glanced out the window, seeing that it was indeed getting dark. She hesitantly accepted on the bottles and regarded him with grateful eyes. "Thank you..."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Six AM sharp. Avery was groggy, but awake. After bringing in her things and crashing on one of the beds upstairs(Bobby had convinced her the his 'boys' wouldn't be home that night), Avery had fallen into a restless sleep, her dreams plagued by monsters and blood. Thankfully though, her schedule as a surgeon had her waking in the early hours.

She threw her legs over the side of the bed and blearily made her way downstairs. She didn't bother with changing out of the clothes she slept in, nor with brushing her hair. The only way to tame her curls was to brush them when they were wet.

Stifling a yawn, she shuffled into the kitchen, figuring she could at least make some coffee for when Bobby woke up. However, she stopped short when she was greeted with the sight of not just Bobby, but two other men as well.

The taller one had a look of sadness and sympathy. The other simply looked at her like she was a piece of meat.

She fidgeted in the doorway for a moment before she looked around and spotted the already made coffee, the pot about half full. She pointed to it and looked at Bobby. "Mind if I...?" He nodded his head. "Knock yourself out."

As she poured the drink, Bobby spoke from the table he and the other two were seated at. "Avery, these are my boys. The ones I told you about. This is Sam and Dean." As he said the names, he motioned to the tall one and the other in turn. "Boys, this is Avery, Erik's girl."

At the mention of Erik, Avery felt the all too familiar pit in her stomach. It never really left, but even the slightest remembrance of Erik seemed to open it wider."I've filled them in on what happened. We think we know what got to him, and we're gonna make it pay. But first, what are you going to do? Do you have family?"

Avery chose to ignore the question. "Erik...he said he hunted those make believe creatures. Do you as well?"

Bobby shook his head. "I'm sort of the book keeper. I don't hunt a whole lot. I leave it to these two."

Avery nodded her head slowly, holding her cup tightly and studying the floor. A second later, she looked up at Sam and Dean. "I want you to teach me."

Sam looked baffled, but Dean seemed more furious than anything. "No way," he said, standing from his chair. "You have no idea what you're asking for."

Avery placed her cup on the counter and faced Dean head on. "I do, actually. I want to pay back the thing that did this. I want a chance for closure."

"And we'll get you that. You dont have to do anything."

She shook her head. "That's not good enough."

He was silent, glaring at her. Bobby spoke up, but neither of them broke their stare. "Avery, Erik specifically said he didn't want this for you. He knew how dangerous it was."

She kept her gaze trained on Dean as she answered. "So he gets to fight the bad guys and I cant? Why was he allowed to risk his life, and I'm not? Why can you do it, but not me?"

Dean shook his head and stalked out of the room, muttering under his breath.

"I'm sorry if I've caused you any trouble, but I know that this is what I want," she said as she looked at Sam and Bobby. "I thought this over already. And in all honesty, it's best that you guys teach me, because if not, I'll just learn on my own."

Bobby sighed and rubbed his face. "Okay. But becoming a hunter doesn't just happen overnight. It takes time."

"How about, you guys give me a crash course, we go and get the son of a bitch who killed my boyfriend, and then we can start boot camp."

Sam was the one to shake his head this time. "It's too dangerous."

"It's non negotiable. It need to be stopped, and I'm gonna be there when it goes down."

Avery gave them no chance to argue with her. She left them in the kitchen, heading upstairs to the room she had put her things in. Grabbing a change of clothes, a towel, and her shampoo set, she headed for the shower.

As she stood under the almost scalding water, she frowned to herself. Maybe she was taking too many liberties with these people. Maybe she was being too trusting. Hell, she had only met Bobby yesterday, and the other two just a short while ago. And besides, she didn't believe in all of this. She supposed though, she owed it to Erik to at least try. Try to believe and avenge his death. Or maybe it was just the shock keeping her from really thinking too much on things.

After her shower, Avery returned to the room and caught sight of her phone. She had almost forgotten about it, it having been turned off while she was driving. People would surely be looking for her. Her friends, her work. For now, wouldn't bother with that. She did have a choice to make in that regard, but it could wait until after she decided if these people were crazy or not.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Alright, Erik had called me about a week or two ago, asking for some info on a special species of werewolf."

Avery nodded her head thoughtfully. "Yea, he had left bout two weeks ago on 'business'."

Bobby tapped his finger on a map. "California."

"Was the information you gave him right? The marks on his chest were deep, spread apart roughly 2 to 3 inches each, and there were five of them."

Bobby nodded. "Yea, added to the info he had already picked up, it sounds about right. These wolves aren't like normal werewolves. They don't just hunt for the meal. They kill just to do it. They are savage and brutal. Most of the time, though, they travel alone. Which is good and bad for us."

Avery tilted her head. "Good as in...There's only one?"

Another nod from Bobby. "Yeah, and bad as in, these suckers are strong. Erik was one of the best hunters I've known. Even if he was solo, for it to take him out says that its one nasty wolf."

Avery blatantly ignored his mentions of Erik. "So what does it take to bring it down?"

Bobby shrugged his shoulders. "Same as any wolf. Silver. But the tricky part is actually landing a blow with it having better speed and strength. So here comes the hard part. Your combat training, which I'll leave to Sam."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

It would be safe to say that Avery sucked. It wasn't any super secret military training or anything. She was given the instruction to simple take on Sam. Needless to say, she ended up on her ass a lot. By the end of it, she was sore, and Sam had had a good warm up. He was also laughing.

"Dont laugh at me."

"I-Im not laughing. I sw-swear..." he insisted, even as he struggled to breath.

She crossed her arms over her chest as she pouted in the grass. "You're laughing."

"Pft, whatever. Come on, you need a bath."

She glared at him. "You trying to say something, Sam?"

"Not at all," he said, as he walked away.

The sun had began to set, casting ominous shadows across the yard. Those shadows concealed Dean as he watched the girl stand from her spot and walk towards the house. His voice sliced through the quiet dusk, halting her. "What the hell are you doing Avery?"

A sigh came from her as she turned to face him. "Im learning. What are you doing?"

He pushed himself away from the rusty car he had been leaning on. "No. Why are you still here? Erik didn't want you in this. How can you just trample all over what his dying wish was? And thats another thing," he said pointing a finger at her chest. "How can you just walk around talking about werewolves, laughing with Sam, when he just died three days ago? Huh?"

Avery's face remained passive throughout his tirade. "Dean, maybe one day you'll tell my what the big issue with me going into hunting is. But this is my choice, and you can't keep me from making it. And I talk about werewolves and I laugh with Sam because it's easier. Easier, and more productive than curling up in a hole and never coming out, which is what I feel like doing. But something tells me that Erik would be even less happy with that. So with that in mind, i'm going to keep learning about these wolves, and practicing with Sam."

She gave him one last look before marching up the stairs. His voice called out behind her. "We leave day after tomorrow. You had better train like hell."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

The next morning was much like the previous one. Get up, don't think, get coffee, get shower, and avoid thinking some more. it worked for her, allowed her to cope.

As she fired off the 9mm pistol, she knew she had finally found the thing she was good at.

"Well," said Sam. "You're better at this than you are with hand to hand..."

Avery huffed and put down the gun. "And here I thought I was doing so well..." she said as she crossed her arms.

"Hey!"

Both turned to face Dean who was stalking across the yard. "We've gotta go. There was two more killings last night. That wolf is having a hayday."

He looked Avery dead in the eyes with the smallest hint of a glare. "Playtime is over."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

It took them less time to get there than Avery did when driving to Bobby's. That could have something to do with them not stopping at all. Avery had taken some time to think something over. Something that didn't quite add up to her.

If Erik had been in California hunting this wolf, then how in the hell did he end up in her ER? It just didn't make any sense to her. She couldn't ask Erik. He was gone. And Sam and Dead probably didn't have the faintest clue either. No matter how many times she told herself that she would never get an answer, she just couldn't let it go.

The motel the stopped at was small, not very clean, and just bad looking all around. Dean noticed her dislike and scoffed. "Get used to it..."

They purchased two separate rooms and retired for the night. They were going to need an early start tomorrow.

As Avery pulled a grey tshirt on, knock sounded at the door. Confused, she strode across the room and cracked it open. Seeing the now familiar figure of Sam, she pulled it open all the way.

"Hey," he said, giving his small smile. "Just making sure you're alright..."

Avery grinned and gave a nod. "Yeah, I'm good."

"Cool. We'll, if you need anything, we're just next door."

"Ah, about that..." she said hesitantly. "What's his issue?"

Sam frowned a little and looked at the ground. "Well, in short, he thinks you're being stupid. And so do I."

Avery's eyes widened just a bit. "Well don't be shy, tell me how you guys really feel."

"Its just that... Our dad raised us to be hunters after our mom passed. I never liked it, and I got out for a while. Dean blames himself for roping me back in, and as much as hates to admit it, he wants out too. And here you are, with a choice of not even touching any of this, and you're throwing it out the window."

Avery understood, she really did. "Sam, I get it, but theres no way I can turn back now. I still don't believe it really. So when the time comes and I see it's real, how can you expect me to continue like everything is normal?"

Sam was silent for a moment, and then, "Good night Avery."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

**Two days later...**

Avery's heart pounded against her chest. She was sure it was going to explode at any moment. She gasped for air as she ran like the hounds of hell were at her ankles. They may as well have been. Gunshots could be heard, though how she heard them over the beat of her heart, she'll never know.

_Oh God, this isn't real..._

She repeated this mantra even as she listened to the deafening roar. The shots stopped and she could hear more snarls and growls, each closer than the last. And she did what every stupid blonde does in horror movies. She looked back. As she caught sight of black fur and red eyes, she tripped over her own two feet. The moment she landed, she twisted her body over to look behind her.

The creature towered over her. It was humanoid, walking on two legs, with long fingers on its hands, each with a deadly claw. Its whole body was covered in black fur. The face resembled that of a wolf, with red eyes that bore into her own.

_Huh...at least Underworld got something right...Wait, gun. I have a gun!_

She scrambled to find the gun, which had flown from her hand during her fall. Even as her finger brushed the metal, three shots were fired.

She turned quickly, just in time to see the monster drop lifelessly to the ground.

A very angry looking Dean stood behind it, gun still raised. He strode over to her, giving the wolf a good kick, then grabbing her arm and jerking her up. "When I say stay out of sight, what do you think that means?"

Avery stared at the figure on the ground. "You guys were right... Erik was right."

Dean cursed the heavens and put an arm around her shoulders. "I know..."


End file.
